The draw for the final tournament of the 2010 Men’s World Cup was kind to the defending finalists, but not the losing semifinalists. 2006 champions Italy face Paraguay, New Zealand, and first time qualifiers Slovakia in Group F, whilst France, who fell to the Azzurri in the 2006 final, were drawn against hosts South Africa, Mexico, and Uruguay in Group A. The Group of Death is widely considered to be Group G, which contains Brazil, Korea DPR, Côte d’Ivoire, and Portugal. The tournament’s opening match will be South Africa-Mexico at Johannesburg’s new Soccer City stadium on FRI 11 JUN 2010. more...

FIFA have settled on the pots, seedings, and draw procedure for the 2010 Men’s World Cup final tournament. The top seeds include hosts South Africa and the top seven teams in the FIFA world rankings of OCT 2009, who occupy Pot 1. Pot 2 contains the teams from the AFC, CONCACAF, and the OFC. Pot 3 holds the remaining teams from CAF and CONMEBOL, whilst Pot 4 contains the remaining UEFA teams. Each group will receive one team from each pot, and no group may contain more than two UEFA teams or more than one team from any other confederation. The draw begins at 17:00 UTC on FRI 04 DEC 2009 at the Cape Town International Convention Centre. more...

A quick summary of action around the AFC second group phase on WED 17 JUN 2009. more...

A quick summary of action around the AFC second group phase on SAT 06 JUN 2009. more...

A quick summary of action around the AFC second group phase on WED 01 APR 2009. more...

A quick summary of action around the AFC second group phase on SAT 28 MAR 2009. more...

A quick summary of action around the AFC fourth round on WED 15 OCT 2008. more...

A quick summary of action around the AFC fourth round on SAT 06 SEP 2008. more...

The draw for the AFC fourth round of South Africa 2010 qualifiers was completed on FRI 27 JUN 2008, and most pairs from the third round remained united. Only Saudi Arabia and Uzbekistan, Group 4 opponents, were separated. Uzbekistan’s opponents in Group A include heavyweights Australia and Japan, whilst Saudi Arabia must face Korea Rep, Korea DPR, and Iran in Group B. Two from each group qualify directly, whilst the third placed teams play off for the right to face the OFC final round winner. more...

The draw for the AFC fourth round of 2010 Men’s World Cup qualifiers will take place on FRI 27 JUN 2008, with two groups of five to be formed. Based on their performances at Germany 2006, Australia, Korea Rep, and Iran are the top three seeds. Japan and Saudi Arabia are tied for fourth; the draw procedure will start with a drawing to put one of those teams in Pot 2 with Iran and the other in Pot 3 with Bahrain. Each group will consist of a Pot 1 team [either Australia or Korea Rep], a Pot 2 team, a Pot 3 team, and two of the remaining teams: Uzbekistan, Korea DPR, United Arab Emirates, and Qatar.

A quick summary of action around the AFC third round on SUN 22 JUN 2008. more...

A quick summary of action around the AFC third round on SAT 14 JUN 2008. more...

A quick summary of action around the AFC third round on SAT 31 MAY-MON 02 JUN 2008. more...

The footballing world is descending upon Durban, South Africa for the draw for the 2010 Men’s World Cup qualifiers. Five Asian, twelve North American, nine European, and twelve African groups will be drawn in the festivities, which start at 15:00 UTC on SUN 25 NOV 2007. The CONMEBOL group phase and OFC final round are already underway and do not require draws. Below are listed the top seeded teams in each of the other confederations. more...